There’s nothing as magical as watching a Hayao Miyazaki film, and letting it transport you to a fantastical world where dragons soar and castles walk. But a Hayao Miyazaki print done in the style of Japanese woodblock prints may just come close.

For a limited time, Japanese woodblock-style prints of Studio Ghibli movies directed by the legendary anime filmmaker are available to purchase. But better snatch them up quick, because like a certain antique grandfather clock in Whisper of the Heart, at the stroke of midnight, they may disappear.

Come 2022, you can be spirited away to the world of Studio Ghibli. An upcoming theme park will bring to life the vibrant and surreal worlds that were first introduced to us in the animated movies by Hayao Miyazaki, Isao Takahata, and other illustrious anime directors.

The theme park’s opening is still several years in the future (they’re probably trying to figure out how to make a real-life Catbus as we speak), but for now, we can get a first look at some absolutely magical Studio Ghibli theme park concept art.

The Collected Works of Hayao Miyazaki Blu-Ray Set will be released by Disney in North America and is now available for pre-order for $224.99. The U.S. release of this set appears to be an Amazon exclusive. Shipping is free with or without Amazon Prime. The set includes the following films: Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, Castle in the Sky, My Neighbor Totoro, Kiki’s Delivery Service, Porco Rosso, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, Ponyo and The Wind Rises. An international trailer and details about bonus features included in the set, can be found after the jump.

How much would you love to visit the worlds of Hayao Miyazaki? Who wouldn’t want to stay at the Hotel Adriano from Porco Rosso or the Aburaya Bathhouse from Spirited Away? Japanese artist Takumi has dreamed up a Studio Ghibli Theme Park we can only wish were real — its not gonna happen but imagine if Disney were to buy Ghibli and create such a theme park in Japan. After the jump you can see the fantastic designs created by Takumi which bring together many of the worlds seen in the Studio Ghibli movies.

Screenprinted movie posters continued to explode in 2014. I drool over so many posters every year, it’s very difficult to pick favorites. With movies, at least you know what you like and you don’t like. Why something works and why something doesn’t. Physical art is more subjective. Some art just hits people one way and others another. Such it is with pop culture posters. Maybe I love one subject more than another and that makes the art seem better. Maybe the art is absolutely incredible but, if I don’t connect with the subject, it’s harder to appreciate. Long story short, ranking them in any definitive ways seems futile.

That said, we figured it would be fun to at least call out a few of coolest screenprinted movie posters of 2014. Fifteen personal favorites that stand out, for one reason or another, to me. Posters are are beautiful, unique and make me remember their subject in a new, vivid way. Check out my favorite screenprinted movie posters of 2014 after the jump. Read More »

Don’t let the name “Kung Fu Theater” throw you off. The latest exhibit at the Hero Complex Gallery in Los Angeles, CA isn’t explicitly about martial arts. That subject is in there – big time – but this exhibit features Asian films of all action persuasions. The weapons aren’t just feet and fists, but guns, swords, monsters, robots and more. The show opens Friday November 14 and will be online Saturday November 15. Below, you can check out some of our favorite pieces in the show, as well as the exclusive reveal of Craig Drake‘s Princess Mononoke poster which will be available on bamboo. Read More »

If you’re in the continental US, it’s hard to get closer to Japan than San Francisco. That makes the Bay City the perfect place for artist Joshua Budich‘s first solo show Otaku Obscura, a tribute to the art of Japanese animation. Opening October 4 at Spoke Art in San Francisco, Budich has created 28 brand new prints based on some of the most famous and popular anime of all time. Films like Akira, My Neighbor Totoro, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Ghost in the Shell, Princess Mononoke and Cowboy Bebop.

Below, we’ve got just some of the gorgeous pieces of Joshua Budich anime art that’ll appear in the show including a /Film exclusive. Check them out below. Read More »

Rumors of the closure of Studio Ghibli are not true, but it seems that Spirited Away and My Neighbor Totoro director Hayao Miyazaki may be done with feature filmmaking for good. In a career that spanned over thirty years directing features, Miyazaki refined his own storytelling and helped change the world’s idea of what stories animated films can bring to audiences of all ages. And yet even with the muscle of Disney behind them, the films of Hayao Miyazaki have been somewhat slow to hit DVD and then Blu-ray in the US. (For Blu-ray that is in part thanks to a measured release plan in Japan.)

With the recent US Blu upgrades for Kiki’s Delivery Service and Princess Mononoke, and the debut release of The Wind Rises on Disney home video, all but three of Miyazaki’s films are now on blu-ray in the States. (Disney will probably have Spirited Away out by Christmas 2015.) That’s as good a reason as any to look back at the filmmaker’s illustrious career. There aren’t any films on his CV you should not see — he has not made a bad movie — but below we’ll look at the films of Hayao Miyazaki in ranked order, to help you figure out what to prioritize, in the event you’re relatively new to his work.

Update: Disney has now also released Porco Rosso on blu-ray, along with excellent discs of Pom Poko and Tales From Earthsea. Disney’s blu releases of Miyazaki (and Ghibli films in general) have been excellent, and stand as essential upgrades from previous releases.

Mondo, a company best known for posters, has also been releasing some incredible albums. They’ve done Drive, Poltergeist, and many others but now they’ve gone above and beyond. Mondo has teamed up with Studio Ghibli to release a compilation album featuring music from five different films: Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle, The Cat Returns and My Neighbors The Yamadas. There will be three different covers, all done by Tyler Stout, and you can read everything about them below. Read More »

The worlds portrayed by Studio Ghibli are so vivid, colorful and imaginative, it seems almost silly to try and picture them realistically. They’re animated for a reason. One film that has a particularly grounded feel though, at least as far as Ghibli goes, is Hayao Miyazaki‘s Princess Mononoke, and that’s probably the reason why Ghibli has officially licensed a London theater group to put on a live-action stage production. It’s the first-ever of its kind.

Princess Mononoke, adapted by the Whole Hog Theatre, will run from April 2-6, 2013 at the New Diorama Theatre in London. This announcement was originally made in July and prompted quite the response, with the run completely selling out in 72 hours.

After the jump, find out more about how Whole Hog plans on adapting one of Miyazaki’s masterworks and how you might be able to see it yourself. Read More »